Guide to Sabi Sabi Private Game Reserve

Talk about a bucket list trip, traveling to Africa was a dream come true and it cannot be complete without a safari.  Now that I've got a taste, I'm left craving more.    Sabi Sabi went beyond my expectations and took my ideas of a safari to a luxurious level.

Perfect Pair: Chicken Souvlaki

Have you started summer menu planning?  Add this dish to your grilling line up.  Not only is it delicious, but it is healthy.  Serve with grilled vegetable ratatouille or an heirloom tomato salad.

Perfect Pair: Roasted Asparagus

The key to good asparagus is not to over cook it.  Think:  crisp crunch and not soggy.  This is a wonderful spring side dish.  Enjoy!

Around the Globe: The Steenberg Hotel

There is a place several thousand miles to the south and east of the United States, across the Atlantic Ocean, that every serious traveler and wine aficionado should visit at least once during their life.  

Guide to Cape Town City

Cape Town is simply one of the coolest cities - if not the coolest - I've ever visited.  It is certainly the prettiest. Imagine yourself enveloped by sharply jutting, cragged mountains spilling into rugged beautiful beaches on one side and colorful Dutch colonial architecture on the other, all within minutes of some of the world's best wineries.  Throw in a rich melange of cultures from around the world, a fascinating history of transformation, struggle, and change reaching back to the 1600s, and an interesting, developing food scene, and you have yourself one of the world's premier travel destinations.

Elysian Elixir: The Ginkgo Spa at the Steenberg Hotel

After an amazing time at The Saxon, Sabi Sabi and Tongabezi, we headed to Cape Town, South Africa. 

Sabi Sabi: Day 3

On our third day at Sabi Sabi, we had barely finished our coffee when we were greeted by a spotted hyena, a slimy scavenger that makes one’s blood curdle. Ironically, we ended our evening by finding another hyena snooping around our back yard in the dark.

Day 2 at Sabi Sabi in South Africa

Sunrise at Sabi Sabi

We weren't sure how we could top such an extraordinary first safari, but we tried anyway at 5:30 a.m. the next day.  Early, but the anticipation cured any fatigue.  

Recipe: Pear and Gorgonzola Soup

After our two night stay in Johannesburg at the Saxon, we took off for a safari.  During our time at the Earth Lodge in Sabi Sabi, we tasted gourmet cuisine everyday.  We tried the chef's Pear and Gorgonzola Soup on our first night dining under the stars of a boma.  The importance to flavor success in this recipe is very ripe pears and a creamy, best quality Gorgonzola Cheese.

Day 1 at Sabi Sabi in South Africa

To get to Sabi Sabi - a private game reserve in northeast South Africa - we embarked from a small airfield outside Jo’burg.

Around the Globe: Moyo

On our second night in Jo’burg, after relaxing in the Saxon all day (we couldn't tear ourselves away from the outstanding service and spa), we were treated by the Saxon with a bottle of champagne delivered to our room at 4:00.  

Around the Globe: The Saxon Spa

After the 17 hour flight to Johannesburg, South Africa, I was treated to the Saxon's Signature Sound Therapy Treatment.  I arrived to the spa and changed into a comfortable robe and was led into the sound room.  

Around the Globe: Qunu

On our first night in Johannesburg, we were picked up at the airport after our direct South African Airways flight by our friends Kevin and Barbara, who are from the States but have lived in Jo’burg for more than four years (Kevin is helping engineer a massive 480 megawatt power plant nearby).  We knew we were in for a treat when we researched the Saxon before our visit and learned that Nelson Mandela (known affectionately by his African name, Madiba) wrote A Long Walk to Freedom while staying at the Saxon, and upon arrival Kevin and Barbara confirmed that it is the best hotel in town. 

15 Reasons Why I Loved The Saxon

After our comforting business class flight on South African Airways, we were greeted by our friends in Johannesburg and headed to The Saxon. Previously a private home, The Saxon Hotel in Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa, opened its doors to the public in June 2000 and transformed into 24 luxury suites. It was so cool to know that Nelson Mandela wrote A Long Walk to Freedom while staying there in 1990. Here are my top 15 Reasons Why I LOVED The Saxon Hotel:

Around the Globe: South African Airways

17 hours on a plane never felt so good.  South African Airways features daily roundtrip nonstop service from the U.S. to South Africa with afternoon direct service from Washington Dulles (with a stop in Dakar, Senegal).